What happened
During a series of scheduled water ingestion tests, a Learjet was performing landing rolls through a controlled pool of water situated on the runway. During one of these maneuvers, the aircraft's path became asymmetrical; the nose gear and the left main landing gear entered the diked pool, but the right main landing gear remained outside the water's edge. This imbalance caused the aircraft to veer toward the left side of the runway.
As the aircraft departed the runway, it struck a pickup truck that was positioned near the edge of the paved surface. The impact caused the aircraft to flip onto its back, at which point it caught fire.
Findings
Investigations into the incident revealed several critical safety failures regarding the test environment. The operation lacked proper alignment markers on the runway to ensure the aircraft entered the pool evenly. Additionally, the testing process was conducted without the use of formal risk management or hazard identification protocols.
Safety margins were also compromised by the placement of ground equipment and personnel. The pickup truck involved in the collision, along with various other vehicles, heavy machinery, and crew members, were positioned within the runway safety area, specifically within the zones designated by the FAA to be free of obstructions during such operations.